f-r-i-e-n-d-s

There are times in everyone's lives when you must part ways with precious things within your life.  Things that have been with you for years.  Things that make you laugh, cry and put you to bed at night.  Things that will always be there for you.  When the rain starts to pour.  Well, when I left for Jerusalem, I was sure that I was going to be giving up my friends for what seemed like forever.  I saved a couple episodes to my computer so that I could have them with me in dire situations, but it still wasn't going to be the same.  I remember going to bed to the sound of silence, instead of laugh tracks and Jennifer Aniston.  Weird.  But then along came a real friend who had thought ahead (spirit prompting?) and brought all 10 seasons.  Can you say knight-ess in shining armour?  This is a public thank you to Stacey, who lets me borrow her friends so that I can keep my friends with me like they've been there before.

Yeah, you're seeing this right.  A legit friends kippa.  Its like the Jews knew I was coming.

Learning Israeli Folk Dancing

This was from a while back when we had a teacher come

in and teach us Israeli folk dancing.  I'll teach you when I get home if you want.

BYU v. SDSU

This is a day and moment you should all remember.  

This is when we were able to catch the BYU SDSU game LIVE.

Oh and we won.

Wood that came from an olive tree...

It is almost a known fact that everyone that comes to Jerusalem has to buy some type of olive wood statue. Especially mormons, and especially BYU Jerusalem students.  So I would like to introduce you to Omar.  One of two 'carvers' who cater specifically to Mormons and BYU students.  This guy is like a legend, he's met more General Authorities than I have.  The carvings he has are beautiful, and the guy is pretty fun.  But having said that, the guy is a merchant and does like to make money, I feel like he generally gives good deals, but you know...he has to make a profit some how.  Oh and he has a University of Utah flag, ugh.

For humanity.

Not everyone was in a giving mood, so
they made lei's for our Hawaiian night.

Signing up to give life.

So, we at the JC like to consider ourselves as charitable.  So much so that we have a whole committee on all things humanitarian.  There is always a humanitarian activity going on.  Every other week we put together humanitarian kits with towels, soap, toothpaste and brushes, combs etc... Another project that has been worked on is a mural at a hospital/rehabilitation center/school just up the road from the center.  There is singing at a retirement home in the old city, and we're starting to teach English at a pre-school.  This is all great fun, and we all really enjoy doing it...BUT...every once in a while an activity comes up that doesn't necessarily appeal to me as much as the others.  This past week was once such occasion.  This group of women showed up in our gym and just started sucking the blood out of everyone.  Peer pressure got to me and this woman jabbed my finger causing blood to spurt out of my favorite index finger of all time.  The blood got all over my paperwork, and then they yanked me on to a bed and jabbed a giant needle into my arm and sucked out a pint of my precious blood.  So it may not have happened quite like that, but it was still painful and creepy, but whatever, its over.. and if my blood saves someone, I can literally say I gave my blood on the mount of olives to save someone else.  Blasphemous?  Yeah, probably.

I feel like I needed the most support.
Luckily Bez and Dr. Christine were
there for me.

Yeah, it was a blood bath.

Support and love was flowing
throughout the room.

                   

The sweet treats for the donors.

Mark and Me happy to be giving.

The blood was flowing.

Painting and Hygiene for humanity...

Workin our tails off

Cory, Lauren and Lawrence showing off the finished product.

Alexia, ready to be shipped off.

Oh, and we like to dance after we serve.  Or stand there in a power stance.

Madi and me gettin our paint on...the walls of course.

I was put in time out for being bad I guess.

What is a painting activity without getting some on your face first. 

Umm, this is Cor washing his paintbrushes.

Our progress so far.

Talent Show

This was my performance at the talent show back in February.   

Gone fishing...where fishermen became fishers of men.

Dear friends, family and foes (if I even have any that read this).  I would just like to inform you that I will be out of town for the next ten days.  I will be relaxing and playing and sight seeing in Northern Israel, on the beachfront of a little lake.  Maybe you've heard of it, it's called Galilee.  Anyways, as internet will not be accessible I have pre-written and pre-made a few posts to keep my faithful readers tuned-in and happy.  So they will be random and incongruous with what is actually happening in my life at the time, but I feel like they should all give you better insight as to what I have been up to the past few weeks.

I hope you have an awesome week in the snow capped mountains or where ever you are.  I'll be on the beach.

Anopol out.

Introducing Mr. Random

So this video has absolutely nothing to do with me or anything recent other than the fact that I love these girls.  This was on our train from Luxor to Cairo, and this attendant man came in and surprised these girls while they were making a video.  Umm, just look at his face... its so funny!  Thanks Jeni and Kels for letting me put this up.

Tidings of great joy...

Racquel and Me outside the ancient
swimming pool.

The top fortress area of the Herodian.

On Monday our field trips took us all into the West Bank once again, this time to a little place most of you probably have heard of.  Bethlehem.  The field trip actually started outside of Bethlehem proper at a place called the Herodian.  This is the ancient palace of King Herod, Herod was a builder, he had residences in Jericho, Jerusalem and here.  I can’t even imagine how huge and how amazing this place must have been.  We spent a lot of time at bathhouse and a giant pool that has a large “pleasure island” as Bro. Muhlestein called it.  After spending some time there we made our way up the pyramid shaped mountain where Herods fortress and mausoleum was located.

Me and Sarah

The group of students who came to
talk to us, and Professor Musallam.

Once we were in Bethlehem our first stop was at Bethlehem University where our Islam/ Palestinian class professor, Adnan, teaches.  We took a quick tour of the chapel there and then went to a room to watch a movie on the university and have a Q and A with some of his students.  This was one of my favorite parts of the day was just talking to Palestinian students, learning about their lives, school, work, play, ambitions, fears etc...  Bethlehem is an interesting place, it is completely surrounded by a giant separation wall.  Israeli’s are not allowed in, and Palestinians need special passes and permits in order to get out, there are big gates where permits are presented and cars/ busses can be searched.  This all was a result of the latest intifada, it is a hinderance to many, including these students.  After the formal Q&A we got to just go out and talk with some other students, Sarah was the first girl I met, she’s really cool.  She is Muslim, speaks English perfectly which she learned from American movies (mainly Fightclub).  She studies English literature and has hopes of studying in America for her masters degree.  All in all this was a really interesting, and fun portion of our Bethlehem field trip.

Merry Christmas.

When we had finished at Bethlehem University we went to lunch at the famous Shepherds Tent Restaurant.  Umm, let me just say...best lunch ever.  Best feature was certainly a plate of red sauce,  when I tasted it I was thrilled beyond belief.  SALSA!

The Church of the Nativity
oldest functioning church
on Earth.

Whitney and me at the place were Christ was born.

After lunch we made our way to the main attraction.  Manger Square.  Musallam took us on a quick walking tour of the city which ended in the giant plaza outside the Church of the Nativity.  Each Christmas Eve thousands of people fill this square to celebrate the birth of the Savior.  Lets be honest though, I didn’t come to Bethlehem to see the square, I came to see the grotto.  The grotto is in the basement, underneath the church.  We had to wait in a short line full of pushy Europeans who kept trying to get in front of our group.  Anyways, we made our way down the 14 steps to the small cave where tradition says is the birthplace of Jesus.  Again, there isn’t any actual proof that this is the place, but the tradition has been in place for so long and it fits the story perfectly so its generally accepted as pilgrims and scholars alike.  The church is divided between three main groups.  So after our time in the Orthodox part we went over to the Catholic church and sang a few Christmas hymns.  Underneath this part is the tomb of St. Jerome, the guy who translated the Hebrew bible into Latin.

The highlight was definitely our devotional and testimony meeting that we had in the shepherds fields outside of Bethlehem.  I love Christmas so much and prepared myself by listening to my favorite Christmas song and what is affectionately known to Nate and Bryce as “the note”.   Lets just sum it up by saying, God Bless us Everyone…and don’t call me Shirley.

Well, its close enough.

The Palestinian side of the separation wall.   

Manscaped...

This week was fun.  On our free day a group of us decided that the hairs upon our heads had gotten too long for our liking.  So we headed to the Old City, the girls went to one fancier salon up in the Christian Quarter and me, Mark and Cory went just inside Damascus where I had previously gone for a trim.  I guess you can call me a regular at this particular barber because I just went in, the guy recognized me, asked if I needed a cut, I said yes, he asked, same as last time, I said yes, and he just went for it.  The style I get is interesting, and probably not one that I’ll continue when I’m back in the US, but I like it good enough.  I will say that the men who cut my hair are like machines, the scissor action they wield is like nothing i’ve seen before.  An unfortunate part of the cut is the gel or industrial cement or whatever you want to call it that they smear onto every strand of hair that has emerged from my scalp.  Seriously, this is the hardest gel I’ve ever felt in my life, and its slathered on like butter on my toast.

Later that night Cory and I fulfilled one of the goals that we had made weeks ago.  We had wanted to experience the smoothness of skin that girls get to feel on a regular basis.  So after an intense soccer tournament, Cory and I slyly made our way out to the patio and were then joined by Spencer E. and Taylor  where we proceeded to remove the hair from the lower two appendages.  I'll let the pictures and this short sentence say the rest... sliding into bed was a wonderful experience that night.

Where are you Christmas?

I was sitting in my Ancient Near Eastern Studies class yesterday preparing for our field trip to Bethlehem, when all of the sudden Brother Chadwick started ruining the traditions of my youth.  It was almost unbearable to hear; so I have decided that I don’t want to live by myself in this defiled Christmas land of false traditions, so all of you better read this, ponder and question everything you have ever known. JK

First hope, dream and tradition of happiness dashed: Jesus was not a wood carpenter.  He was a stone mason.  No one used wood in Jerusalem in that time (or in this time really).  Also see number 4.

Second hope, dream and tradition of happiness dashed: The City of David is not Bethlehem, it is Jerusalem, and Jesus was not born there.  

Third hope, dream and tradition of happiness dashed: The cave that Jesus was born in was not a stable.

Fourth hope, dream and tradition of happiness dashed: The manger was made of stone, not of wood.  It was not full of hay, because hay wasn’t used, it was a stone, watering trough.  

Fifth hope, dream and tradition of happiness dashed:  Santa isn’t real, yeah, I took it hard too.

So, just to clarify, “Once in royal David’s city DID NOT stand a lowly cattle shed, where a mother DID NOT lay her baby in a manger (but in a TROUGH) for his bed.  Mary was his mother mild, Jesus Christ her little child.”  Oh, and Santa aint not comin to town!

Anyways, i'll post what else I learn after our field trip to Bethlehem on Monday.  Til then...Be good, don't be bad.  And don't call me Shirley!